Forgiven
by LOTSloverCSS
Summary: Richard and Kahlan kiss and make up after an argument.


**TITLE****:** Forgiven

**AUTHOR****: **LOTSlove®

**CHARACTERS****: **Richard / Kahlan / Cara / Zedd

**RATING****: ** R

**WARNINGS****:** Author Chooses Not to Use Warnings

**TIMELINE****: **Set towards the end of S2 but before Tears

**DISCLAIMER****:** I'm completely obsessed with the show Legend of the Seeker and all things Richard and Kahlan. I love to write about them even though they cancelled my show and now I'm fighting to get it back!

**SUMMARY****: ** Richard and Kahlan kiss and make up after an argument. Written for Lauri at her request.

**Forgiven**

"Are they still fighting?" Cara frowned as she looked around the campfire for any signs of the Seeker or Mother Confessor.

Kahlan's bedroll was spread out on one side of the fire while Lord Rahl's was on the other side. They always slept right next to each, but she guessed tonight would definitely be different.

"Not so much fighting I would say," Zedd thoughtfully mumbled, his focus on the simmering stew pot before him. "Just not speaking to one another at the moment."

"Do you even know what they're upset about?" Cara asked, her brow furrowed as she sat down next to the fire.

"I don't know," the old Wizard replied, testing the stew with his spoon. "I'm sure they'll work it out soon. Those two can't stay mad at each other for very long."

"I don't know," the Mord'Sith shook her head. "It's been going on all day."

She had heard them arguing last night from the edge of the clearing, their voices quiet whispers that steadily grew more and more heated until the Mother Confessor had stormed off into the woods. The Seeker had angrily plopped down by the fire, his mood sour, and his expression pure daggers.

Whatever had set the two of them off, it wasn't something that had resolved itself yet. Neither one of them had said anything to each other all day. The tension between them was growing thicker. She swore she could cut through it with a dagger the way things had been going.

Cara looked up to see the Seeker entering their campsite with an armful of wood for the fire. His expression had softened a little, but still showed his heated frustration. Walking over to the fire, he silently dumped his armload.

She watched as he glanced about the clearing, his expression falling even further with the absence of the Mother Confessor. Cara swore if those two didn't resolve whatever was wrong between them, she was going to force them to solve it.

"She's down at the river," Zedd knowingly said without even looking up from his stew pot. "She said she wasn't hungry."

It was almost as if Cara could visibly see Richard's jaw clenching even tighter in agitation. Whatever their argument had been about, he had obviously been the cause of it. If he knew what was good for him, he'd swallow his blasted male pride and go down there and talk to her.

He stood there for a long moment as if contemplating his options before suddenly going to his pack, resolve hardening like steel. Finding what he wanted, he quickly stuffed it into his pocket.

Cara and Zedd watched as Richard disappeared into the woods, knowing that neither one would be back any time soon. Zedd started dishing out the stew, handing Cara a steaming bowlful.

"Well, I for one am not waiting around until those two decide to come back," Zedd announced. "I'm starving."

"When aren't you?" Cara shook her head with a roll of her green eyes. "I just hope Lord Rahl begs for her forgiveness."

"I have a good feeling they'll work it out rather quickly," Zedd replied with a knowing smile as he settled back with his bowl of rabbit stew.

XXX

Richard slipped through the darkening forest as if it was the middle of the day, his instincts automatically directing him around fallen limbs and over protruding tree roots. He didn't have to concentrate on where he was going as he allowed his woods guide skills to take over, allowing him time to think about what he would say to her.

It had occurred to him yesterday that all he had to do was willingly give himself over to her magic, allow it to judge him worthy of her. Once it found that he loved her so completely that it had nothing to take, he would be left untouched.

His excitement over the sudden revelation had unfortunately died rather quickly in the wake of her overwhelming fears, turning into heated frustration and anger. Kahlan was so beyond terrified of stealing his soul that she wouldn't even listen to him when he had tried talking to her about it last night.

He wasn't asking her to make love right then, but to consider that he might be right, to trust him. He decided that's what had sparked his anger the most. It was the fact that he felt like she didn't trust him, didn't believe that he was capable of loving her so much that her magic wouldn't affect him.

At the same time, he felt tremendous guilt for having upset her. He had never meant to hurt her or to push her into something she didn't want. He had thought that she wanted him as much as he wanted her.

Maybe she didn't.

The thought caused him to misstep, nearly tripping over a tree root bulging out of the ground. He couldn't bear the thought, choosing rather to banish it from his mind. He knew she loved him, knew how deeply she wanted to make love with him. It was her fears, all the years of tradition and training that had been drilled into her head, telling her that it was impossible.

Finally clearing the woods, Richard found Kahlan sitting on her green blanket along the bank of the river, the setting sun creating a pastel backdrop. Her arms were wrapped around her drawn up legs, her chin resting on top of her knees. She was obviously still struggling with the things that he had said to her, trying to reconcile his words with what she had been taught to believe.

Staring at her now, he knew that he never should have pushed her like he had, telling her that he knew they could be together without fear. He loved her so wholly, so completely there couldn't possibly be anything left for her magic to steal. He knew in his heart that it had to be the key, but convincing her was something altogether different.

Richard raked his fingers back through his hair in an effort to pull his emotions back in check. Getting frustrated or upset with her again wouldn't win him her forgiveness. The thought of sleeping alone, sleeping away from her wasn't something he was particularly looking forward to. He had grown so accustomed to waking each morning to the site of her beautiful face next to him.

He didn't want tomorrow morning to be any different.

Kahlan knew he was standing there watching him, but didn't want to acknowledge him or turn around to look into those warm brown eyes. To gaze into those soulful brown orbs and not give him what they both so desperately wanted was almost too much to bear.

She wanted him so much it almost hurt at times, her desire for him creating a lonely aching void that resided deep within her core. It was one that only he could fill, only he could ever satisfy. She knew that one taste would never be enough for her, only temporarily sating the hunger, but never completely abolishing it.

She would always and forever want him, be drawn to him.

But she was afraid. She was terrified that he was wrong, even scared a little that he might be right. She loved him above all else. There was no question, no doubts in her mind about his love for her and yet she couldn't shake the fear that nearly paralyzed her.

She never wanted to lose the man she had fallen so in love with.

Drawing a deep breath, Richard slowly made his way to her. "Can I sit with you?" he softly asked, not wanting to upset her any more but not able to go on without talking to her. This rift that had erupted between them was slowly eating him alive.

Kahlan looked up at him, his sorrowful brown eyes melting away some of her anger with him. She silently nodded her head in response, moving over to make room for him on the blanket beside her.

Relieved, he sat down close to her, drawing his knees up as well. They sat in uncomfortable silence for several long moments, watching the setting sun, each trying to decide what to say.

"Richard …" Kahlan murmured.

"Kahlan, I'm sorry," Richard softly said, interrupting her. "I never meant to upset you. I was only excited that I had finally found a way for us to be together. I wasn't trying to push you into anything you didn't want to do."

"You don't know for sure that you've found a way, Richard," she sighed in frustration. "I want to be with you more than you can possibly know, but I refuse to hurt you just to satisfy my own selfish desires."

Richard reached over, taking her hand in his. "Kahlan, they aren't selfish desires," he told her, lacing their fingers. "I know because I share them too, struggle with it daily. I want you so badly it hurts sometimes, but I don't want to do anything that you don't want to do. I only want to make you happy."

Staring into his eyes, Kahlan could see the truth of his words shining there. With a huff of frustration, she pulled her hand free, jumping to her feet. She wrapped her arms around herself as she turned her back to him. She couldn't bear hurting him like this, but she didn't know what else to do.

"That's the problem. I want to…I want you so badly I can hardly breathe sometimes," she admitted. "I wonder how I'll survive another moment, another day without feeling you against me, without knowing your touch or tasting your kisses.

"But then I look at you and I'm reminded of all the things that I love about you and how I would erase every last shred of who you are because of who I am."

The bitterness and self-loathing in her voice made his heart constrict, causing it to sink like a stone in his chest. He loved everything that she was, loved that she was a Confessor, the powerful magic that she possessed. He truly felt that was the key to them being together without him being confessed.

He didn't fear her or her magic. Instead, he embraced it, loved her even more because it made her who she was – so very special and beautiful on the inside and out.

Standing to his feet, Richard made his way to her, his hands coming to rest on her shoulders. He felt her tense only to relax beneath his touch just as quickly.

"I love you…all of you, Kahlan…just as you are," he gently told her, forcing her to turn around and meet his gaze. "I truly believe that is the answer to your magic."

"Richard," she frowned, tears now beginning to glisten in her eyes. "I want so badly to believe that you're right, but I just can't risk losing you. I need you just as you are, not some mindless slave following me around waiting for your next command, staring at me with those soulless eyes."

"Confessed or not, I would willingly follow you wherever you went, even to the ends of the earth," he told her, taking her face into his hands.

Kahlan's eyes fell closed, his special smile on her lips. She felt her resolve beginning to slip, her desire for him warming her to her core. Could he be right?

Richard's hands suddenly slipped from her face as he shoved one into his pocket only to pull something out. Confused, she watched as he held up a small cloth bag.

"This belonged to my mother," he told her, sadness suddenly swimming in his eyes as he spoke of her. "This is all I have left of her."

She watched as he loosened the thin string that held the small bag closed before turning it over in his hand. Opening it, she saw a silver ring lying in the palm of his hand. She stared at it for a long moment, amazed at its delicate beauty, the intricate weaving of two bands into one. She'd had no idea that he'd even had anything like this with him.

She looked up into his eyes to find him staring at her. "My father gave it to my mother as a gift the day that they were married. It represented the joining of their hearts, their lives," Richard said. "When she died, he gave it to me to give to the woman that I fell in love with someday."

Kahlan felt her heart stutter in her chest, her pulse suddenly racing. She couldn't believe what he was saying to her. Her eyes fell back to the ring in his hand, her breath vanishing from her lungs. She didn't know what to say.

"I've been saving this ring all this time," he said. "I knew soon after I met you that I'd be giving you this ring someday, Kahlan. I was going to wait until the first time we made love, but I changed my mind. I want you to have it now so that you know that I will always be with you, will always love you no matter what happens.

"I'm yours, Kahlan. Even if I am never able to make love to you, I'll always be yours. You mean more to me than any physical relationship we can or cannot have. You are my heart, my life. Without you, I'm nothing."

"Richard…" she whispered, shaking her head in stunned disbelief as she stared at the beautiful ring. "I…I don't know what to say."

"Say you'll take it," he replied, hope filling his voice as he took her hand and slid the ring onto her finger, thrilled to find it fit perfectly. "It's not a marriage proposal, Kahlan. I plan on doing that after we find the Stone of Tears and the Keeper is defeated. You deserve far better than this for something as special as that."

Kahlan stared in amazement at the ring on her finger. It was as if the ring had been made especially for her instead of Mary Cypher. It caused her heart to leap into her throat, her longing for him to unexpectedly thrum through her veins.

Richard watched her for a long moment, worry beginning to creep over him. Maybe he had picked the wrong moment to give it her. What if she didn't like it?

He silently berated himself for being so foolish. She was the Mother Confessor. She deserved better than this ring, probably had dozens of them worth a hundred times as much at the Confessor's Palace in Aydindril. What had been thinking?

Just as he about to take it all back, Kahlan threw herself into his arms. His wrapped his arms around her, burying his face in her hair. Relief washed through him, thrilled that she accepted the ring that meant so much to him.

Kahlan suddenly pulled back, her lips crashing into his. She fisted his shirt tightly in her hands, pouring all of her love into that kiss. He swiftly responded, drawing her even closer to him.

His worries melted away, quickly being replaced by his deep-seated need for her as he buried his hands in her hair. A groan escaped his lips as her tongue began to caress his mouth, all thoughts but her swiftly being erased.

His mind froze as she began to pull his shirt from his breeches. Her touch was like fire as her fingers snaked up under the material to lightly scrape her fingernails over the dips and valleys of his muscular chest.

He gently grabbed hold of her wrists, pulling her hands out from under his shirt. He took hold of her arms, locking her against him. "Kahlan…" he shook his head in an effort to tamp down on his body's demand for her. "I didn't give you the ring to convince you to make love with me."

"I know," she murmured, leaning in and kissing him again. "But that is why I want to. I see how unconditional your love is, how deep it runs. I know now your love is more powerful than my magic."

A soft smile spread across Richard's face as he gazed into the bluest eyes he'd ever seen. He couldn't believe this was real, that they were finally going to be set free from the painful confinement that their love had been sentenced to.

He kissed her again, allowing his hunger for her to take over as his fingers began to work the clasps of her jacket. The sweet hum of desire pumped wildly through him, inundating him as he removed her jacket, raising his arms as she removed his shirt.

He blazed a trail of kisses along her jaw, his breath suddenly hot against her ear. "Are you sure, Kahlan?" he asked, knowing that he was rapidly approaching the point of no return.

A sensual drawn out moan was her reply as his fingers skated across the tops of her breasts, pausing at the laces to allow her time to stop this now if that was what she wanted. She took hold of his hand, placing it over her breast, her lips finding his in a passionate kiss that sent shivers of desire tingling up his spine.

He gently caressed her through the material, his mind reeling with what he was doing as his nose nuzzled her cheek. He could hardly believe this was truly happening. He was finally going to make her his in every way, his dreams finally becoming a reality.

He inhaled deeply as he brushed his nose against her ear, absorbing the scent that made his heart race and his knees weak with need. Using his nose, he brushed her hair aside as he sought out the sensitive spot behind her ear. He gently raked his teeth over the skin before caressing it with his lips and tongue.

Kahlan firmly gripped his arms to steady herself, tilting her head to the side as he slowly worked his way down her slender throat. Her mind was in a glorious haze of mounting pleasure, warm desire washing through her the longer he kissed her.

His lips found hers again, his hips grinding against hers, showing her what she did to him just by existing. He suddenly pulled out of the kiss, pressing his forehead against hers as her fingers trailed over his abdominals to skim along the top of his breeches, dipping beneath the edge to tease him with what he so desperately wanted. He closed his eyes, fighting back the overwhelming urge to just take her right now, but he wanted this to last as long as humanly possible.

He anxiously began working the lacings of her corset, her chest already beginning to heave with mutual need. He kissed along her throat again, nipping at her flesh as he worked the corset from her body. She suddenly felt so exposed, so vulnerable as it fell away from her body. But she was with him and that was all that she'd ever wanted. She wanted to be seen by him, to be touched and kissed wherever he wanted.

She gasped as his mouth found her breast, his hands stroking down her sides to grip her thighs. He was suddenly lifting her up, wrapping her legs around him as he carried her to her blanket spread out on the grass. His lips found hers once more as he laid her down, eagerly ridding each other of every last shred of clothing that kept them from being skin against skin.

His touch was like fireworks against her flesh, his kisses growing more demanding as wanton desire exploded between them. A sharp gasp escaped her lips as he entered her, her back arching as spikes of pleasure soared through her, aching pressure mingled with bliss beyond imagine.

He paused to stare into her beautiful blue eyes for a long moment, searing this moment into his memory as his fingers lightly caressed her face. He kissed her tenderly as he slowly began moving within her, setting a steady unhurried rhythm as he loved her.

Kahlan wrapped her arms around him, holding him close to her as her fingernails pressed into the muscles of his back. He broke the kiss, tilting his head back for air before pressing his forehead into the crook of her neck as his movements rapidly grew more powerful, more urgent.

His hand slipped down to her thigh, stroking along her smooth flesh before gripping her tightly and bending her knee up even further. The feeling of his body cradled between her long legs, of being buried deep within her heat like this was beyond anything that he could have ever imagined.

His name was almost a continual breathless chant on her lips as her power swirled into a fierce firestorm deep within her. She did her best to control it, but it was swiftly slipping from her grasp as he took them closer and closer to that blissful edge she craved for him to take her over.

"Kahlan…I love you…more than life itself…" he panted, his breath like fire against her throat.

She gripped even tighter, a strangled growl escaping his lips. He grabbed hold of her hands, interlocking her fingers with his, each holding onto the other as they flew higher and higher.

Tears pricked her eyes at the thought of losing him and yet she knew in her heart she trusted him, believed him. She loved him and he loved her. Nothing could be more perfect in her mind than this.

"I love you…Richard…" she throatily moaned.

The velvet sound of her voice caused him to harden even more within her, his thrusts coming faster, harder. Before she knew it, she felt the heated explosion of release, her magic igniting in unison with it.

Richard could feel the storm rising within her, felt the soundless thunder reverberating through him as her magic sought out a soul to steal. It was like a strong wind rushing through him before suddenly disappearing just as quickly as it had come.

And then he began pumping into her with all that he had, falling over that precipice right along with her.

It took all he had to keep from crushing her as his body gave out on him. Her trembling form welcomed his weight over her, eagerly pulling him down onto her and holding him close. He kissed her slowly, deeply, relishing the feel of being in one another's arms, of sharing something so beautiful and intimate.

"I love you…Kahlan," he panted, nuzzling his nose against hers. "Spirits…I love you…"

"And I love you…Richard," she smiled softly, leaning up and capturing his lips.

"So am I forgiven?" he asked, loving the feel of her body pressed into the ground beneath him.

"Almost," she murmured, reaching up to brush a damp lock of brown hair from his forehead.

"Almost? I thought it was beyond amazing."

"It was, but I think we better try again just to make sure you were right," she smirked.

A lop-sided grin rose to his lips as he stared at her. She was so breathtaking lying there beneath him, the soft afterglow of love that enveloped her beautiful features, her lips slightly swollen from his kisses, a haze of euphoria permeating her blue eyes still dark with longing for him.

He would make love to her over and over again for as long as there was breath in his body. He loved her above all else. Nothing was going to ever keep them apart…not even her magic.

**THE END**


End file.
